Alcor plans to start a series of regular training sessions that will be held at Alcor up to six times a year, beginning with three during the remainder of this year. The first of these free training weekends for first responders will be on the weekend of June 13th and 14th 2009 at the Alcor facility in Scottsdale Arizona. This training is open to anyone who would like participate for the two days. We only have room for fifteen people, so please RSVP early to Regina Pancake, Alcor’s Readiness Coordinator, at Regina@alcor.org to hold your spot.

The Alcor transport team will still be traveling to perform training in regions where we have first responder teams in place already. However as the community of cryonicists near Alcor grows, it makes sense to have training sessions for our local population of members. Those who are interested may also travel to Scottsdale to attend these sessions if they wish.

On May 4th and 5th, Alcor’s transport team did a two day training in Laughlin Nevada for the casino owner’s security detail who are tasked with being Don Laughlin’s personal first responders in the event of his legal death. The Alcor team trainers, Aaron Drake, Todd Huffman and Regina Pancake set up stations for the employees to experience hands-on all the equipment that is utilized. After running everyone through the various processes and underlying theory, the Alcor staff members on the second day worked out several scenarios that would work with the help of the eleven security employees who volunteered for this duty.

The team then did a timed walk through of an actual transport from within the casino. It began with placing our mannequin (Manny) in one of Mr. Laughlin’s penthouse suites, and went through all the way to how to get the ice bath/thumper unit onto the Lear jet. It was a straightforward exercise, and all that were involved rolled with the variables that any scenario of this nature can throw at a team. In the end, they now have a working ice bath/thumper unit deployed to their region, and all the new individuals on the Riverside Casino team feel much more competent in performing this service for their employer if it comes to that on their watch.

Alcor is pleased to announce the election of Tim Shavers to the Alcor
Board of Directors at the May board meeting (held April 25 for
scheduling reasons). Tim is a new member of Alcor, but has been an
active Advisor and member of the Finance Committee since last year. He
brings to the board an impressive background in law and business
consulting. His full bio can be read here:

April was a busy month for Alcor field work. Two Alcor members had
scheduled surgeries in Arizona during the last week of April. One of
the surgeries was deemed to be high risk. The surgeries were in
Tucson and Phoenix, one day apart. Alcor elected to perform
precautionary standbys for both of them, bringing in three team
members from Suspended Animation, Inc. (SA) from Florida for a joint
deployment exercise with Alcor personnel. This proved invaluable
because just prior to the surgeries, Alcor’s Standby Coordinator,
Regina Pancake, became ill, and Alcor’s Transport Coordinator, Aaron
Drake, was deployed to Canada for a last-minute non-member case in
Vancouver, British Columbia.

Four staff members from Critical Care Research, Inc. (CCR) also joined
the standbys on a voluntary basis to help out (thanks!) after driving the
SA transport vehicle from its California base to Arizona for the standbys.
Aaron Drake returned two days later, in time for the second higher risk
standby, after the family in Canada decided not to proceed with cryonics
arrangements.

Both surgeries were successful, and the members are recovering.
There was another deployment outside the USA in February of this year,
when Regina Pancake spent a week in England preparing a patient for
low temperature shipment to Alcor. A full report of this case will be
published soon.

Alcor apologizes for the substantial delays in getting the two remaining 2008 issues to its members and subscribers in time. To get the publication of the magazine back on track again, and to improve its contents, Alcor has appointed Alcor member and publisher of the cryonics blog Depressed Metabolism Aschwin de Wolf as editor of the magazine.

Alcor is determined to publish the 2008-3 and 2008-4 issues and 2009-1 issues in quick succession over the coming months. If you have any questions about the magazine, or would like to contribute to the magazine, please contact the editor at: